FED: Doctors slam Aust response to swine flu crisis
13 Jun 2009 4:07 AM
Subject: FED: Doctors slam Aust response to swine flu crisis FED: Doctors slam Aust response to swine flu crisis
SYDNEY, June 13 AAP - Doctors have criticised Australia's response to the swine flu crisis, with some patients waiting eight days for test results or receiving anti-viral drugs too late to limit the infection.
GPs have blamed delays and inconsistent responses at state and federal levels for undermining efforts to contain the disease in Australia, placing the nation on the front line of the world's first flu pandemic in more than 40 years, The Weekend Australian says.
The World Health Organisation conceded defeat on Friday in global efforts to confine the novel H1N1 strain, upgrading its six-level warning system to full-blown pandemic.
Despite the worldwide upgrade, Australia did not lift its own pandemic alert status to the highest level, on the basis that the disease remained a mild one for most of the population.
Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon on Friday sought to head off doctors' concerns by announcing almost $4 million in new funding to provide extra support for GPs.
And Prime Minister Kevin Rudd defended Australia's preparation for the swine flu epidemic as "among the best in the world".
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FED: Doctors slam Aust response to swine flu crisis